Ofuna Six
Ofuna Six (オフナーシックス, Ofunā Shikkusu''Note the change of pronunciation from that of Ōfuna (大船), the manufacturer.) was the name used by Ōfuna for two very different 6×6 rangefinder folders in the 1950s.Much of the information in this article derives from Hagiya, "Ōfuna Kōgaku no kamera." Both have two windows on the back, for 6×6 and 6×4.5, and both have a unit-focussed Ofunar 75mm f/3.5 lens, designed by Kunitomo Kenji (国友健司) within Ofuna, made by Ofuna and the same as is used on the Ofunaflex. Model with non-coupled rangefinder The earlier and better-known model has a non-coupled rangefinder, which shares the eyepiece of the viewfinder. As the camera is viewed by somebody using it to take a photograph, the eyepiece is slightly to the left, the focusing dial for the rangefinder is to the right, and the film winding knob is to the left. The finder housing has an accessory shoe in the centre and is inscribed "OFUNA SIX". The struts for the door are curved and are not marked with any manufacturer's name. The shutter changed over time: originally a Nissei Rapid, from December 1954 an NKS-FB (B, 1–300), and finally (from some time in 1955–6) a Copal (B, 1–300). Cosmetic and perhaps other changes were made over the camera's lifetime. An early example (to judge by its Nissei shutter) has "''OFUNA SIX" in one line in oblique script (the ends of the "S" extending below the "F" and above the X"), an "OFUNA" logo to the right of the accessory shoe (as the camera is held for use), and "&infinity;—feet—4" inscribed below the distance scale of the rangefinder; a later example (to judge by its Copal shutter) has "OFUNA SIX" in one line and in a straightforward (non-oblique) script, no "OFUNA" logo, and no inscription below the distance scale.Older example shown here, later example shown by Hagiya, p. 160–61. About 2000 of these cameras were made.Hagiya, p. 162. Model with coupled rangefinder A later model (c.1956–7) is much less known in Japan. It has a sliding control on the front of the finder housing to move the 6×4.5 finder mask in and out of position. "OFUNA-SIX" is inscribed in one line of a non-oblique lettering across the top. In other ways, too, it looks very different from its predecessor, and very similar to certain models of Mihama Six and Mine Six. This new Ofuna Six was ordered by Kashimura (樫村) for export. While the lens is an Ofunar as claimed, The body is indeed made by Takane and is the same as that of the Mine Six IIF.Takane's manufacture of this camera for Ōfuna was one part of an arrangement whereby Takane was able to obtain Zunow-brand (but in fact Ofunar) lenses for the Mine Six IIIS(B); see Takane. Notes Sources / further reading In Japanese: * *Hagiya Takeshi (萩谷剛). "Ōfuna Kōgaku no kamera: Kamera kara kōgaku heiki e" (大船光学のカメラ：カメラから光学兵器へ, The cameras of Ōfuna Kōgaku: From cameras to military optics). Chapter 8 of Zunō kamera tanjō: Sengo kokusan kamera jū monogatari (ズノーカメラ誕生：戦後国産カメラ10物語, The birth of the Zunow camera: Ten stories of postwar Japanese camera makers). Tokyo: Asahi Sonorama, 1999. ISBN 4-257-12023-1 First published in issue 39 (September 1996) of Kamera rebyū: Kurashikku kamera senka (カメラレビュー・クラシックカメラ専科). External link In Japanese: * Ofuna Six (earlier version) at Kamera no heya Category: Japanese 6x6 rangefinder folding Category: O